Police investigation finds mob justice video authentic

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Pretoria - A police investigation has confirmed that the video that went viral last week was authentic.

“Further to media reports earlier in the week about a mob justice video, which went viral, the South African Police Service would like to advise that it has found the video to be authentic,” SAPS spokesperson Lieutenant General Solomon Makgale said on Friday.

The footage showed a man being kicked and hit on the head with an axe by a crowd including some people wearing ANC t-shirts.

It was initially thought the attack may have occurred in Alexandra on Election Day but police have established it actually took place in February in Tonga, Mpumalanga.

Makgale said the mob justice incident was prompted by house robbery in which a husband and wife were shot and killed and their daughter raped.

“Then the matter was reported to the police. Whilst the police were busy conducting their investigations, the community organised themselves and conducted a manhunt. The community apprehended one murder and rape suspect and beat him to death. When the police arrived on the scene the suspect was already dead,” he said.

Given the seriousness of the gruesome video incident, a task team was set up in order to fast-track the investigation.

The team arrested three men aged 51, 33 and 27 years on a charge of murder. The suspects appeared in the Tonga court on Friday. They were released on a warning and reappear in court on Monday.

“The police condemn the mob justice incident and would like to urge all citizens of our country not to take the law into their own hands as doing so amounts to the commission of a serious crime,” Makgale said. – SAnews.gov.za